February 1804

Sender

Bertel Thorvaldsen

Sender’s Location

Rom

Recipient

Bertel Thorvaldsen

Recipient’s Location

Rom

Information on recipient

Ingen udskrift.

Dating based on

Teksten er ikke dateret, men må antagelig stamme fra omkring februar 1804, da det er skrevet på samme ark som et brevudkast til brev af 25.2.1804 fra Thorvaldsen til Abildgaard. Det kan dog ikke udelukkes, at tekststykkerne kunne være nedskrevet på et tidligere tidspunkt, da Thorvaldsen var kendt for at genbruge de papirstykker, der ifølge bl.a. Thiele I, p. VII hobede sig op i et af hans værelser.

Abstract

A sheet with text fragments – possibly transscriptions – written by Thorvaldsen for his own purpose. The first passage has a fictional character, the second seems to be grammar and spelling exercises.

Document

Der ere vi alle Frue! Fulde af den største Urolighed for at høre Enden af den stalkkels Dioninas[?]^I Hestorie som saa meget enteresserer os. Den blev staaende just der hvor den Ulykkelige overrumplet i en Have kastede set Port[r]ait. Jeg syntes, at dette verkeligen er stor Daarskab og jeg lagde til, at jeg aldrig kunde ægte^II Den Pige, som jeg gjerne vilde efterdi jeg tænkte^III at man neppe saae hende skride frem paa Dydens Bane, da man allerede saae Hende vige tilbage. Jeg erindrer vel lille kjere! Deres AnMærkning som kom noget for tidhig^IV; og det var for sildigt tel at give Dem det skyldte[?]. De kjeder lidt^V det menskelige hjærte dersom De tænke saaledes. Troer De maaske at man i fireogtyve Timer kan telintetgjøre en^VI vane som er endgroet i fra Barnsbene[?] De har aldrig vedst hvad det var at modstaa eget Hjærtes Følelser[.] Dette bliver altid Herre til sin engen^VII Skam[.] i Begyndelsen af Omvendelsen falder man og vender om.
Men hvorledes kan de sige Frue! at Dionina^VIII ikke er omvendt da hun i fireogtyve Timer[…]
et Sup^IX Substantiv er et Ord / som i sig selv endeholder et fludt fuldt Begreb. Det kjendes B bedst derpaa; at man kan ligge Artiklen for eller bag til dem for Exsempel Guld / Guldet Byld / en Byld Bylt Bylten Kort et Kortet[.] Disse Desse have alle store begyndelses Bogstaver. Substantiverne have to Endelser i Enkelttallet: nemlig den benævnende benænede benænende benævnende, hvorri man lege^X frem benævner en Tegng Ting for Exsempel Goldvet Gulvet Gulv, Øye, Mund Spjæl Spejl Haaer Haar. og den E ejende Endelse som dannes af tilkjendegever at en Ting ligesom E ejer end anden for Eksempel Pandens farve Bordets Fad Hvilenn Villiens Bøyelse Jordens Pløy Pløynigig Pløyning Tjenerens Herre[.] Denne endelse dannes af den første ved at lægge S til den. I Flere Fleertallet forholder det sig ligeledes der ere anden en benævnende og en ejende Endelse hvilke ligeledes af den benævnede ved at tilføye den S[.] I er en Vokal og udtales som i Ordet Iagtage naar det ikke smelter sammen i Udtalen med nogen Anden Vokal fE: Irgang Rige, ride Ride, Rie Rie. jjod^XI derimod er en Kon Konsonant, (Medlydende det er som lyder med en Anden) og udtales som i Rje Reje Jagt naar ikke som det sme[l]ter sammen med en Vokal og altsaa har Kaka Ke Karakteren Karakteren ^XII af en K Konsonant:^XIII Saaledes i neje Hoj Hejse Res Rejse Jubille Jubilæum Jubilæum Jørgen L

[i margen på s. 3:]
en Bane^XIV er bedre end en anden
Barn
B Barn
Papir Jeren^XV
Jeren Jeren
Staael
Kover Staal
Kaaber^XVI
Blye Guld
Sølv
Benævnende^XVII
ten^XVIII messing
Jejer Jejer
messeng

[i margen på s. 4:]
Spejl Spæl Spejl Spejl

Oversættelse af dokument

This is where we all are, Madam! Full of the greatest unrest to hear the ending of the poor Dioninas[?] story, which interests us very much. It stopped where the unhappy woman surprised in a garden throws her portrait. I thought that this really was a great folly and added that I could never marry that girl as I should like to because I thought that she was hardly seen progressing on the path of virtue as she was already seen to recede. I remember well, my dear! Your remark which came somewhat early and it was too late to give you what was due [?]. You will easily bore the human heart, if this is the way you think. Do you think that one for twenty four hours can wipe out a habit ingrained from childhood [?]. You have never known what it meant to resist the feelings of your own heart [.] This will always become master to its own shame [.] At the beginning of the conversion you fall and return.
But how can you say, Madam! That Dionina is not converted as she for twenty four hours [...]
A sup substantive is a word/which in itself contains an entire entire idea. It is B best known from the fact that you can place the article in front of them or behind them for example gold / the gold, bundle / a bundle bundle the bundle map the map [.] These These all begin with a capital letter. The substantives have two endings in the singular: namely the designator designator designator designator in which the thing is simply mentioned for example the floor, floor, eye, mouth, mirror, hair, hair. And the P possessive ending which is formed by shows that a thing so to speak O owns another, for example Pandens farve etc. the colour of the brow, the dish of the table, the bending of the will, the ploughing of the soil, the master of the servant [.] This ending is formed from the first one by adding an s. In the plur plural it is the same, there is other one designator and a possessive ending which also to the designator adds an s [.] I is a vowel and is pronounced as in the word iagttage when it does not coalesce with another vowel eg. Irgang, rige, ride, rie, rie. jjod J on the other hand is a consonant (consonant is what sounds together with another sound) and is pronounced as in rje reje jagt when it does not coalesce with a vowel and so gets the character of a C consonant thus in neje Hoj Hejse Res Rejse Jubille Jubilæum Jørgen L.

[In the margin on page 3:]
One path is better than an other
Child
C Child
Paper iron
Iron iron
Steel
Copper steel
Copper
Lead gold
Silver
Designator
Tin brass
Iron iron
Brass

[In the margin on page 4:]
Mirror miror mirror mirror

[Translated by Karen Husum]

General Comment

These strange texts are found on pages 3 and 4 of a sheet which also contains one of Thorvaldsen’s drafts of 25.2.1804 to Abildgaard.

The meaning of the fragments is unclear. They may be exercises, fantasies, or perhaps copies. If nothing else, the texts show Thorvaldsen’s writing difficulties, see the related article Thorvaldsen’s Spoken and Written Language.
The text is in two parts: Thiele I, p. 207 suggests that Thorvaldsen may have copied the first mysterious text from “…some Danish novel – maybe ‘Ildegerte’, which he had brought with him …” Thiele is here referring to August von Kotzebue’s novel Ildegerte, Königin von Norwegen. Historische Novelle, 1788, which in P.D. Faber’s Danish translation (1791) was entitled Ildegerte, Dronning i Norge en historisk Novelle. Thorvaldsen had brought the novel with him on his journey from Denmark and mentions it in his travel journal from 1797.
It has not been possible to find the fragment in the Danish translation of Ildegerte.
The second part of the document deals with grammatical matters. It is conceivable that Thorvaldsen copied the text from a grammar. In that case, it is not the Danish linguist Jacob Baden’s Forelæsninger over det danske Sprog, eller resonneret dansk Grammatik, Copenhagen 1792. It is also possible, as Thiele I, p. 206-207 suggests, that Thorvaldsen has written down the basic rules of grammar under Georg Zoëga’s guidance.
Most of the text is reproduced in Georg Brandes, op. cit. He wonders what may be the meaning of the first mysterious story without coming to any conclusion. He thinks that the second part of the text is just an exercise.

Document Type

Archival Reference

Thiele

Other references

• Georg Brandes: ‘Fra Thorvaldsens Ungdom’, in: Liv og Kunst, 1929, p. 104-105, hvor teksten gengives med afvigelser fra denne transskription.

Subjects

• Thorvaldsen's Education
• Thorvaldsen's Spoken and Written Language

Commentaries

1. The name is difficult to decipher, but it is repeated below, probably spelt in the same way.
   It has not been possible to discover a literary work with a character of that name.

2. The word can be either ægte (marry) or agte (respect).

3. Thorvaldsen has repeated the word thought in the margin.

4. Dvs. tidlig.

5. The Danish word can be interpreted as a little or easily.

6. Thorvaldsen har først skrevet end, men d’et er overstreget. Samme skelnen mellem en og end ses i margen.

7. Thorvaldsen må mene egen skam, selvom betydningen af sætningen ikke står ganske klar.

8. The letters ioni in the middle of the word have been crossed out as if Thorvaldsen were uncertain about the spelling

9. Probably the beginning of the word substantive. Thorvaldsen must have begun the word but then become aware or been made aware of the spelling mistake.

10. Dvs. lige. Som det ses, skriver Thorvaldsen ofte e, hvor han skulle have skrevet i.

11. Thorvaldsen’s spelling of the letter J reflects his Copenhagen accent.

12. Indsat oven over linjen: Begyndelsen Begydelsen.

13. Indsat oven over linjen: Konsonant som ikke saaledes i neje, hejse og Rejse.

14. This sentence is perhaps connected with the remark in the text above about the girl who was hardly seen progressing on the path of virtue.

15. Below Thorvaldsen lists a number of metals. The purpose of this is uncertain. It is probably just an exercise.

16. Dvs. kobber, jf. det overstregede Kover ovenfor.

17. This word is placed in the margin against the other attempts at spelling designator in the text.

18. Dvs. tin.

Last updated 13.04.2015